Mental health services and resources for children with developmental disabilities and their families: scan of local practices, gaps, and opportunities created.
Jessica Hanson, Kayla Heslon, Tatiana Ogourtsova
PMID 37325126WHAT IT FOUND
A scan of Montreal-area mental health services for children with developmental disabilities found they are hard to access.
Most require referrals, have waitlists, or restrict age and location, and few offer follow-up care. Services often target the child but ignore the family unit.
Key findings
01Most in-person services require a referral from another professional, and a significant portion have waitlists or geographic restrictions.
02Services primarily focus on assessment and intervention, with very few offering follow-up support after care ends.
03Clinical managers reported that insufficient staff and inadequate training in mental health are major barriers, often leading to interventions focusing on disability symptoms rather than emerging mental health concerns.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The scan was limited to public services in one region of Quebec, so it does not reflect availability elsewhere or in the private sector. The search strategy was less rigorous than a systematic review, meaning some less visible resources may have been missed. Data on waitlist duration was incomplete, so the extent of delays is uncertain. The perspective was drawn from healthcare providers and managers, not from families or patients themselves.
Declared interests
The project was funded by the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation (CRIR) New Initiative Fund 2021–2022.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret this list of services as evidence that adequate mental health care is currently available for children with developmental disabilities in Montreal. The study's primary finding is the existence of significant gaps, including high referral requirements, waitlists, and a lack of family-centered or follow-up care.